Edicion de Ago/Sep 07 - IglesiaVisionGlobal.com

The Birth of a
Responsible Adult
by Xenia Schiller
“Want to hear my something new I
learned?” Robert asked. I nodded, edging
him closer to his room across the
hall from where his younger brother
was already sleeping. Getting this eleven-year-old
to bed was always a challenge.
In a moment, Robert unleashed
his new knowledge by launching into
a litany of cuss words. At his doorway,
he turned and studied my face.
I hoped I didn’t look as shocked as
I felt. I knew it was an important
moment, and I tried to weigh my
response carefully. What should I say?
I was not a parent; I was just a childcare
provider. But I had known both
of these boys for over three years,
and I loved them. Every morning I
got them ready and off to school,
day camp, or band practice. It was a
great responsibility, in addition to my
full-time job and college classes, but I
couldn’t imagine not having them in
my life. As I recovered from Robert’s
proud proclamation of profanities, I
remembered an earlier incident. I sud-
14
denly knew where Robert had learned
two of his new words.
It had been a clear and calm June
morning a month earlier. I chose to
make the daily commute without the
background noise from the radio. The
tires hummed on the pavement as I
mentally logged the things that had
to get done that day. Everything was
on schedule; I would even be on time
to church later that morning. I was in
“The Zone.”
And then it happened. An oncoming
driver, clearly not in The Zone,
ran his red light at the three way stop,
narrowly missing my little sedan.
Behind me, a horn blared, shattering
my peace of mind and shocking me
out of my meditation. My pulse felt as
though it went from 0 to sixty in two
seconds. Quickly, loudly, and angrily,
I berated the driver with some choice
language.
From the back seat, a little voice
suddenly piped up, “What’s wrong,
Xeni?”